Digital Equipment Corp - Early History, Attempt At Restructuring, Takeover By Compaq Computer Corp.

Digital Equipment Corp. was a leading developer of microprocessors, semiconductors, and other high-tech equipment in the 1970s and 1980s. Its breakthrough Alpha microprocessor, introduced in 1992, went on to power such well-known World Wide Web portals as Alta Vista and Lycos, although Lycos eventually switched to Microsoft's Wintel platform. Despite its technological breakthroughs, Digital struggled in the early 1990s to keep pace with competitors more adept at things like cutting costs and modifying sales strategies to take advantage of new industry trends. Eventually, the firm was taken over by Compaq Computer Corp. Digital's Alpha server line continues to serve many Unix-based systems.